When we walked into Eris I was wowed. And this was before we even drank anything. The two-story space is amazing. Our 3-generation party of birthday celebrants was shown to a festive table where we immediately began evaluating the ciders and pours available like we had a job to do!
In this imaginatively-repurposed urban space – a converted Masonic Temple – with her nearest and dearest gathered, an intoxicating array of ciders beckoning to be sampled, and as a HUGE bonus, Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan playing at the bar, CiderWriter felt she had somehow stepped into a higher plane of existence. And she wasn’t even the birthday girl.
We started with Pedestrian, a cider whose name does it no justice. It was described as a “modern dry cider for everyone.” Your basic brut. And by basic, I mean, the brut that forms the basis for the other ciders, not something that is average. “Crisp, fresh and tart, like a glass of Granny Smith,” the menu blurb continued. Not sure I agree about Granny but I downed my 5 oz. pour and asked if I could please have some more.
Ersa 
Van Van Mojo
Van Van Mojo, blueberry cider hopped with Mosaic, the Blush, a “dark, sweet and tart cherry blend,” and Pele’s Pineapple, a Fire-roasted French oak-aged pineapple cider made their way to our table. The verdict on these was as follows: those who ordered the fruit-infused pours enjoyed and finished all of them. Being a person of more austere sensibilities, I was less enthused about the infusions.
Rounding out the flight of 5 was the crisp-yet-complex Ersa, which we ranked 5 stars.
Food is on par with any other popular bar; everyone should find something to order. I’d be more inclined to return for drinks and bar bites as opposed to making full scale dinner plans – maybe because I was so fascinated by the building and brewing processes I couldn’t sit still. There was so much to see, so many questions to ask and so many nooks and crannies to explore, I returned for a Sunday tour.
Delving into the building’s years-long conversion, assisted by neighborhood volunteers who rallied to save this architectural gem from extinction, and demonstrating all aspects of the on-site brewing process, our guide took us throughout every level of the imposing space – still a work in progress – before delivering us to the bar to enjoy a cider flight, receive our souvenir glass and raise it in toast to Eris – the goddess of discord. Long may she reign.
Plan your trip to Eris.